Back Issue Keys –The Incredible Hulk 364

Today's Key issue I picked up from an LCS (Local Comic Store) 30 minutes from where I live. I'd never been there before and had very little time as the family was waiting for me in the car. There were a lot of slabs and some decent back issues. It seemed to be functioning the way a comic shop should; the owner/operator who is friendly and looking to make a sale without pressure and some local comic heads who might just be there to say hi, and feel part of the community. I didn't have the cash to drop on a slab so I told him I was looking for some good back issue keys. Under time pressure and a text from my wife I quickly sifted the bins and pulled out a 1989 copy of The Incredible Hulk 364. I didn't check the interior pages because I never assume they are white, it's nearly impossible on the classic newsprint style paper. The book did have a near-perfect spine, no rollover, and nice staple alignment. The edges and corners were also excellent. I'm not an expert, but I'd say a least a 9.4 if I had it graded. It needed a bag and board change when I got home and I snapped the photos you see in this article. The pages were solid, not brilliant, but I'd call them off white which added to my satisfaction. Issue 364 had Peter David writing (one of the best Hulk writers of all time), Jeff Purves drawing, and a cover by Walter Simonson.

The 1st appearance of Madman is what marks this one as a Key. I also picked up a very nice copy of Tales of G.I. Joe from the shelf with a $15 Canadian dollar price tag on my way to pay. The owner looked over my items and said, "Let's call it $15 even," I gave a smile – old school collectors nod. He wants my business and I'm looking forward to returning. As of this writing, a raw copy of Incredible Hulk 364 is going for between $8 and $15, with a slabbed CGC 9.4 coming in at $57 Canadian. It was a fun last-minute hunt. Picking up good quality Keys is a personal favorite of mine and getting one for zero dollars is like a double scoop of ice cream when you paid for one.

Leave a comment below, let me know what you think about this find.

Stay focused fellow humans!

Comments

Factors of Return

W hen I recently decided to drive out of my way to visit a comic shop, as the one close to my house stopped selling comics months ago, I was returned to a world both familiar and exciting. I am an artist and writer myself and both of those skills started as a direct result of digesting comics in my youth. I'll admit I was a bit out of the loop and a little hesitant to pick up some of the titles I used to read in the past. I haven't been living under a rock when it comes to recent social/cultural movements, and I do not share the view that every nuance of life has to be viewed through, or serve a political agenda. Nor do I think that every word or interaction is a quest for power, as post-modern theory would have us believe. I would never fault someone for writing from their heart and mind, no matter what their personal or political views are. However, taking a well-known and even beloved character (without knowing the nuanced historic layers built up by ...

May the roll be with you

For years Darkhorse published Star Wars comics. There were some bright spots here or there in their publishing, but as a whole, I just never connected my Star Wars enthusiasm to the Darkhorse runs. There could have been many things that contributed to that feeling; mediocre art, disjointed writing, inconsistent timelines, or just sub-par editing. I never want to downplay anyone's hard work and making comics can be very labor-intensive if done right. Darkhorse Star Wars just lacked the excitement and sense of adventure, place, and scope that made the Star Wars films so awesome. There was a different horse before the dark one held the license. Trusty old Marvel comics published Star Wars between 1977 and 1986 and are now publishing the franchise again, re-acquiring the rights in 2015. Here is where my collecting bells go off, and not the bad ones either. When you can crossover the love of comics with the film/TV/action figure bedrock that Star Wars encapsulates it spells out p...

Express Review Dos – Spiderman 56 & 57

Let's just tackle two Spiders with one review. I'm probably never going to abandon the Amazing Spiderman, it was one of the first comics I bought with my own money and I wish I had all of those issues today – such is the life of a collector. Back in the '90s (when I was much younger) I couldn't get enough of all the Spiderman / Ben Reilly 1994 - 1996 clone stories. At the time Mark Bagley designed the Scarlet Spider costume and I vividly remember his style of drawing. Well, here we are decades later and Bagley is drawing Spiderman again. Bagley's work is consistent but is starting to feel a little outdated, and not in a nostalgic way. I love old Romita Sr, Buscema, and Kirby comics just to name a couple – I'm having a harder time with Bagley this year. An example would be Arthur Adams, even though he seemed a bit snarky to me at a convention I went to, there is no doubt Adams' work is both masterful and has become better with age. Bagley's work feels st...

Comic Sandwich by CT Guy

Search This Blog